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As with many post-secondary students, Steven Nelson realized he was in need of a new computer before heading back to school this fall.

But instead of opting for one of the “big brands,” the Seneca College business marketing student purchased a custom-built machine from a local company instead.

“All I needed was a budget-friendly Windows 7 computer that could run software for school and power my hobby of producing electronic music,” says Nelson, who lives in Richmond Hill. Nelson paid under $300 for the desktop computer, built into a Xion-branded tower — hardly a household name compared to the likes of HP, Dell, Apple, Lenovo, Toshiba, Sony and Acer.

While Nelson says he generally cares about brands — the 20-year-old was wearing a Diesel shirt and Zara jeans — he says he “couldn’t care less” about what company’s logo was on his computer. “The off-brand had the specs I needed for the price I wanted, plus it didn’t have any of that annoying ‘bloatware’ my $600 HP PC had,” he says, referring to the extra software pre-installed on most Windows computers.

While Nelson found a dramatic difference in price between a brand-name PC and a lesser-known, locally built machine, this isn’t always the case.

“Long ago, buying a so-called ‘white box’ computer from a smaller vendor was the easiest way to save money compared to major-league brands — but today, even name-brand PCs are selling for rock-bottom prices,” says Carmi Levy, an independent technology analyst based in London, Ont.

That said, Levy says a computer built from a smaller computer store gives you more options for configuration. “When you choose a name-brand PC from the shelves of a big box store, you’re often stuck with whatever’s there. If you want a bigger hard drive, a bit more memory or a better video card, most times you’ll be out of luck because major brands tend to sell a limited number of configurations at retail,” he explains.

Smaller vendors, on the other hand, often let you select the specific components that go into a particular computer.

“You get exactly what you want and you’re not stuck paying for parts or features that don’t interest you,” Levy adds. “You can also specify higher-quality components if you want, but you might end up paying more for the privilege.” At least you’ll end up with a customized machine that you wouldn’t be able to get from anyone else.

PC buyers deciding between a familiar brand and a locally manufactured machine should also consider the three S’s: software, service and support.

As Nelson lamented, many name-brand machines often ship with a significant amount of “bundleware” on the hard drive, typically advertising-laden demos and trial versions of software that can clutter the desktop and frustrate users (good luck trying to opt out of installing the “optional” security software).

“This insidious form of software bloat has become a major source of revenue for the big PC makers, as they sell the desktop real estate to software companies as a form of advertising; but the practice annoys customers to no end,” says Levy. On the flip side, white box machines —those without a registered brand name — rarely have this dubious software pre-loaded and, as a result, “buyers don’t have to spend time removing title after title of stuff they didn’t want in the first place,” he adds.

While major computer makers often have more robust customer support options — such as toll-free, 24-hour online or telephone help — smaller vendors often can get the job quicker because they have service depots located right in your community, says Levy.

“While no one can guarantee same-day service, the process is sped up somewhat because everything takes place locally, and you can actually speak directly with the technicians who work on your computer.”

A one-year warranty on a new computer is pretty standard for both brand-name and white-box PCs, as are return policies.

“Unfortunately, for white-box vendors, the writing is on the wall,” predicts Levy, as they’ve lost their price advantage compared to popular brand-name computers. “As average PC prices have slid, their market share continues to shrink.”

Plus, a local shop’s focus on desktop computers has also receded in recent years as laptops have become more popular — not to mention smartphones and tablets. “You can’t ‘build’ a laptop in the same way that you can configure a desktop PC, which puts white-box vendors at another competitive disadvantage,” adds Levy.

A smaller company going belly up before your warranty is up might be a concern for some.

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